Of vulture restaurants, tandems in the night sky, and a September sneak peek

With the upcoming hike on Saturday in mind, a reminder that we will also visit Narrec’s vulture restaurant, a special feature of the area. The first such restaurant was built in South-Africa during the 1960’s. To this day they serve as safe-food sources for vultures threatened by factors like indiscriminate poisoning, high-voltage power lines and habitat destruction. These imposing creatures need our conservation efforts for they act as nature’s clean-up agents, preventing the spread of diseases like anthrax to livestock.

For those with an interest in our night skies, note that for the whole of Friday evening (9 August) planet Jupiter will move across the sky in tandem with the moon, dipping in the west about 2 hours after midnight, with Saturn following not too far behind. Did you know that Jupiter is so voluminous that 1300 Earths would fit inside it?

And finally, as Stok-en-Hoed continues to look for new horizons, we thought to provide a small sneak peek (see below) into our plans for September. Since the hiking season for this year is nearing its end, we hope to offer something special: A longer (about 18 km) wilderness trail in the mountains with wildlife aplenty as well as some fascinating vegetation. Keep an eye on our Calendar, we look forward to have you with us!